The MLB Power Rankings were assembled by BoSox Injection writers Joe Meehan, Michele Pettis, and Drew Peabody.
(Last week’s ranking in parentheses.)
1.(1) LA Angels (82-53) – The Angels have won nine of 12. They are operating on all cylinders, much like Oakland was before the All-Star break. While his overall numbers might be down (.808 season OPS vs. .995 career OPS), Albert Pujols continues his career trend of low strikeout totals with only 55 this year vs. 148 for his all-world teammate Mike Trout. – Drew
2.(3) Washington Nationals (77-57) – Washington has lost three of four. When you have three different starters leading the team in wins (Doug Fister), ERA (Tanner Roark), and strikeouts (Stephen Strasburg), you know you have a deep starting rotation. – Drew
3.(2) Oakland Athletics (78-57) – Oakland has lost four of six and has been passed by the streaking Angels. Remarkably, Oakland continues to lead the majors in runs scored, despite ranking only 21st in batting average. – Drew
4.(5) Baltimore Orioles (78-56) – A hot Chris Tillman could spell a ticket to October for the O’s. – Michele
5.(4) LA Dodgers (76-60) – The starting rotation will improve when Hyun-jin Ryu returns from his injury. – Michele
6.(6) Kansas City Royals (74-61) – The Royals have lost three in a row, resulting in the loss of their division lead. Their worries are twofold: the Tigers in the division and the Mariners in the wildcard race. – Joe
7.(9) Detroit Tigers (74-61) – Miguel Cabrera clearly has not been healthy, and he left yesterday’s game with an ankle injury. The Tigers need a healthy Cabrera to make a deep playoff run. – Joe
8.(7) Milwaukee Brewers (73-62) – After a strong start to August, the Brewers have lost seven of their last nine. In an effort to boost their bullpen, they went out and acquired Jonathan Broxton from the Reds. – Joe
9.(11) San Francisco Giants (73-62) – The Giants have moved back into the last wildcard spot with a five-game winning streak. – Michele
10.(10) Seattle Mariners (72-62) – Seattle has lost three of four. After his record number of seven inning, two or fewer earned-runs per start streak ended, Felix Hernandez has started three times without attaining that level of success. In his last start Hernandez surrendered four home runs to the Nationals, the first time all season he has allowed multiple homers in a start. – Drew
11.(8) St. Louis Cardinals (72-63) – The Cardinals are hoping that Yadier Molina‘s return will give them a boost both offensively and defensively. – Joe
12.(13) Pittsburgh Pirates (71-64) – The Pirates are suddenly back within 2.0 games of the Brewers, but another Andrew McCutchen injury has to be concerning. – Joe
13.(12) Atlanta Braves (71-65) – Atlanta has won five of eight. Julio Teheran has been the ace of the starting staff with 13 wins, a 2.90 ERA, and 1.07 WHIP. – Drew
14.(14) New York Yankees (70-64) – When Masahiro Tanaka comes back they could make a playoff push. – Michele
15.(16) Miami Marlins (66-68) – Miami has lost six of eight. Reality has set in for Casey McGehee. After a .777 OPS before the All-Star break, McGehee has slumped to a .610 OPS and only nine RBI since the All-Star break. – Drew
16.(17) Cleveland Indians (70-64) – The Indians finished last season on a 15-2 run to earn a wildcard spot. Do they have it in them again? – Joe
17.(15) Toronto Blue Jays (68-67) – A season that started out with so much promise has collapsed on the Jays. – Michele
18.(18) Tampa Bay Rays (66-70) – The Rays’ improved play will not be enough to make the playoffs. – Michele
19.(19) Cincinnati Reds (65-71) – The Reds have a +8 run differential while the Cardinals have a -10. Baseball can be funny like that. – Joe
20.(21) San Diego Padres (64-70) – The improved play of the Padres is great to see, even if it comes a month too late. – Michele
21.(20) New York Mets (63-73) – The Mets have won three of five games. Bartolo Colon has been the subject of trade rumors due to his age (41), relative success this year (12-10, 3.82) and the fact the Mets would love some other team to take on his $11 million contract for 2015. – Drew
22.(23) Philadelphia Phillies (62-73) – Philadelphia has won six of eight. While Ben Revere‘s .308 batting average and 39 steals lead the team, his 11 walks and 15 RBI through 495 plate appearances do not jumpstart the offense well. – Drew
23.(24) Chicago Cubs (61-75) – Jorge Soler is the latest prospect to make his major league debut with great success, homering three times in two games. Theo Epstein has done a great job of stocking the farm. – Joe
24.(22) Chicago White Sox (61-75) – The White Sox have been active on the trade market the past few days, moving Alejandro De Aza and Adam Dunn to contenders. – Joe
25.(27) Boston Red Sox (59-76) – David Ortiz has been a bright spot in an otherwise dreadful season. – Michele
26.(25) Minnesota Twins (59-76) – Phil Hughes has been unexpectedly good in what’s been an otherwise disappointing second half for the Twins. – Joe
27.(26) Houston Astros (58-79) – Houston has lost five of seven. Collin McHugh will be sorry to see the calendar turn to September; he was 3-0 with a 1.91 ERA over six August starts, allowing no more than two earned runs in any of the six starts. – Drew
28.(28) Arizona Diamondbacks (56-79) – David Peralta is doing his best to be a ray of sunshine in this miserable season. – Michele
29.(29) Colorado Rockies (54-81) – Every starting pitcher has an ERA over 4.00 – ouch! – Michele
30.(30) Texas Rangers (53-82) – Texas has won four of six. Neftali Feliz is attempting to re-claim his place as Rangers closer after two injury filled years and a try at starting. Feliz has converted seven of eight save chances and holds a 2.82 ERA for the season. – Drew
Biggest Jump: Tigers, Giants, Red Sox (+2)
Biggest Drop: Cardinals (-3)